In a previous study, we could demonstrate that treated hypertensive patients with poor BP control have a greater WLR of retinal arterioles than those with good blood pressure control. Interestingly, in this cohort we did not find a significant relation between BP and WLR of retinal arterioles using correlation analyses. We have concluded that this lack of a relation might well be the result of the effects of some antihypertensive drugs to beneficially influence vascular structure (9). Subsequently, we analyzed WLR of retinal arterioles in a cohort of never-treated patients with essential hypertension and normotensive controls. In this cohort, both systolic BP and diastolic BP were significantly related to WLR of retinal arterioles independent of traditional CV risk factors and other confounders, e.g. subclinical inflammation, endothelial dysfunction and dietary salt intake. Moreover, in this cohort, the WLR of retinal arterioles was greater in hypertensive than in normotensive subjects (11).